Songs of My Grandmother
Jungyoon Wie

Jungyoon Wie’s Songs of My Grandmother is a musical commemoration of events in her grandmother’s life. Written for a concert featuring Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, Wie presents a personal take on “the end of time,” knowing each visit with her grandmother may be their last. 

The first movement, “Work Song from Across the Mountain” describes her grandmother’s childhood helping on the family farm, using a repetitive, folk-like melody to evoke call-and-response work songs. A celebratory piano theme signals her marriage.

“Water Song from the East Sea” uses a flowing piano ostinato to generate motion, as Wie’s grandmother travels on foot from North to South Korea to search for her husband, who left without explanation. The movement is sentimental but also unsettled, reflecting the uncertainty of travel and searching.

The final movement, “Christian Song from the South,” honors Wie’s grandmother’s devout Christian faith. She struggled with gastroenteritis after finding her husband in South Korea, but was miraculously cured when she began attending a church. The clarinet opens this movement by quoting “Amazing Grace,” but as the other instruments join in, the tune is gradually changed to a folk song reminiscent of the first movement. The two tunes sounding together represents the marriage of these aspects of her grandmother’s life, her faith, and her heritage.